BMW Group Middle East has witnessed solid sales growth during the first quarter of 2009 despite global crisis with several importers posting double digit growth for BMW used car division.

The group registered a moderate nine per cent sales decline when compared to the corresponding period last year.

Several importers including Lebanon and Syria registered sales growth of over 108 per cent and 116 per cent respectively, while Saudi Arabia experienced a 15 per cent growth.

“A decline in sales was not unexpected given the increased impact of the global economic and financial crisis on the region. The industry is facing challenging conditions, and in the current context a nine per cent decline in sales is in line with our expectations,” said James Crichton, sales and marketing director, BMW Group Middle East.

“However, we have been working closely with our importers and the results have helped us to not only achieve growth in several markets, but also increase our market share by two per cent from our two main competitors.”

“Our flagship 7 Series model and X6 Sports Activity Coupé were the two biggest volume sellers which demonstrates that the underlying fundamentals remain solid in the region’s luxury segment,” Crichton added.

The X6 Sports Activity Coupé performed very strongly, with 584 units sold during the first quarter of 2009, representing an impressive 1,618 per cent growth in sales when compared to 2008.  The 7 Series sold 1,118 units, registering a 93 per cent growth in sales.

Across the region the biggest markets by volume of units sold were Dubai with 772 units, followed by Abu Dhabi with 589 units sold. A total of 568 units were sold in Saudi Arabia and 445 units in Kuwait during the first three months of 2009.

Crichton highlighted BMW Group’s focus on innovation and customer requirements by drawing attention to the successful BMW Premium Selection programme.

'We continue to put emphasis behind our used car programme called BMW Premium Selection. It is a global used car programme that has been received extremely well by customers and BMW importers who have invested heavily,' he noted.

Reiterating BMW Group’s commitment to the region, Crichton added: “We expect the rest of 2009 to be full of challenges but are confident that we will weather the stormy economic conditions successfully as we are a strong performing company with a solid foundation.”-TradeArabia News Service